1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to self-service, coin-operated, manual car wash stations.
More particularly, the invention relates to such car wash stations equipped with integrated or built-in exit apparatus for drying of vehicles with a drying air flow immediately after washing has been completed.
2. Description of Prior Art
A conventional self-service coin-operated manual car wash station is typically equipped with a flexible pressure hose and associated manually operable spray wand or trigger actuated nozzle for spraying clean and soapy water to pre-soak, wash and rinse the vehicle. Such car wash stations may also be equipped with apparatus for spraying liquid wax through said nozzle or a separate nozzle, and a brush to which soapy suds are supplied for scrubbing the vehicle. A coin-operated control box controls delivery of the water, soap and wax to the appropriate nozzle or brush based on a selection made by the user and for a predetermined time based on the amount of money deposited into the control box.
Conventional prior self-service coin-operated manual car wash stations are typically designed and built to meet several common desirable attributes and characteristics that make them suitable for use by the causal or occasional user, while maintaining them as financially viable commercial business establishments. These desirable attributes and characteristics include:
the cleaning apparatus, i.e., the brushes and spray nozzle, and associated hoses, are relatively lightweight, easily maneuverable, simple to operate, and share a commonality of obvious or self-explanatory operation,
the cleaning apparatus are controlled by a coin-receiving control box that is also simple to operate, and designed for obvious or self-explanatory operation including necessary instructions and indicia, such that the car wash station is a cash generating business without the need to be permanently staffed,
the coin-operated controller is adapted for mutually exclusive selection of one of the alternate operating modes of rinsing, washing and waxing such that no two operating modes can be inadvertently selected or operating simultaneouslyxe2x80x94accordingly, if, for example, coins are deposited for fifteen minutes of spray operating time and only five minutes is used for the initial pre-soak, ten minutes of operating time will be left available for spray washing and rinsing, and
the operating equipment, including pumps, supply tanks, flow control valves, etc. is secured in an equipment room or in an otherwise out-of-reach location to prevent tampering by unauthorized personnel.
In short, it is desirable that self-service coin-operated car wash stations be easy to use by the casual user without the need for assistance or oversight of an attendant or presence of other personnel.
In order to maintain suitability for the casual user, is it desirable that any improvement for self-service, coin-operated manual car wash stations include and build upon these characteristics. Unfortunately, drying of washed vehicles is an area that has not been successfully or adequately addressed in the prior art with regard to such manual car wash stations while keeping within the above-mentioned desired characteristics.
In order to avoid unsightly water spots, the conventional procedure used with coin-operated, self-service manual car wash stations is to towel dry the vehicle immediately after washing or waxing has been completed. However, this conventional procedure presents several difficulties, including:
The user must either remember to bring towels to the car wash station, or use paper towels provided at the car wash station.
If cloth towels are used, they must then be carried back home for cleaning.
The use of paper towels is generally not desirable because, among other things, they tend to shred while being used and contribute to unnecessary waste because of the large number of towels needed to dry an entire vehicle.
Manual towel drying is a time-consuming operation. As a result, towel drying of the vehicle may not be thoroughly completed, often times because parts of the vehicle air dry prior to drying such areas with the towel.
In addition, towel drying can be harmful to the finish of the vehicle. For a few users extremely concerned about the finish of their vehicle, one of the attractive features of a manual car wash is that scrub brushes and other apparatus that may contact the vehicle in an automatic car wash are avoided in a manual car wash. For those individuals, towel drying tends to defeat this otherwise attractive aspect of manual car washing. And for this reason, those individuals tend to use specialized materials for drying their vehicles. However, such materials are relatively expensive, and must be carried to and from the car wash facility.
Investigation of the prior art reveals numerous adaptations and modifications related to manual car washing. However, none provide suitable alternate drying arrangement within the above-mentioned desired attributes and characteristics of the self-service, coin-operated manual car wash station.
Burger, U.S. Pat. No. 3,787,986 discloses a blower arrangement adapted to develop a desired specific air-flow characteristic for drying freshly washed vehicles. Although possibly suitable for use in a stationary position in an automated car wash as contemplated in certain embodiments, the dryer arrangement of Burger is rather large and bulky, and is not suitable for use by the casual user of a typical self-service coin-operated manual car wash facility. In particular, the large exposed air flow cavities and exposed rear inlet through which air is drawn is located precisely where the user would be standing if manually pointing the dryer at the vehicle, creating a genuine and substantial hazard to both the user and the equipment.
Coggins et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,950,331 discloses a self-contained coin-operated compressed air vehicle drying system adapted to be used at a pre-existing car wash station such as either being secured to a wall or provided free-standing. Unfortunately, such an arrangement does not fit within or promote those recognized desired characteristics of self-service coin-operated manual car wash stations discussed above. Specifically, the Coggins apparatus is susceptible to tampering or damage as a result of being intentionally placed in the open. And since the dryer is on an independent, separately controlled coin-operated timer, the dryer may be operated simultaneously with another of the conventional spray functions, resulting in possible confusion of the user, and resulting in at least the possibility of additional/unnecessary expense to the user if additional spray time remains with the conventional coin-operated liquid spray control box when the drying air spray is needed.
Schwartz, U.S. Pat. No. 6,021,584 discloses an attachment for an air blower that is adapted to produce a sheet of high-velocity drying air for drying vehicles. This attachment is suitable for use in a non-commercial environment such as at the user""s home, but includes no provision for timed operation or manual flow control, and therefore is generally not suitable for use in a commercial self-service coin-operated car wash station.
Ferre et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,033,489 discloses a self-contained manual vehicle washing center suitable for use by trained personnel, but not suitable for use by the casual user of coin-operated car wash stations.
Additional prior art directed toward automatic car wash facilities, including several drying arrangements suitable for use therewith, include: Kobayashi, U.S. Pat. No. 4,563,788 (a top drying nozzle device and associated link mechanism for controlled movement of the nozzle); Belanger, U.S. Pat. No. 4,979,316 (a free-standing portable booster dryer for automatic car wash line, but not suitable for the desired unattended operation of a coin-operated manual car wash station); Burke U.S. Pat. No. 5,098,023 (an apparatus for semi-automated car washing comprising a multi-purpose arch or a series of arches adapted to automate certain steps during washing of a vehicle); Barber U.S. Pat. No. 3,994,041; Rendemonti U.S. Pat. No. 4,020,857; Hanna, U.S. Pat. No. 4,559,721; Burger U.S. Pat. No. 4,561,193; McIntyre, U.S. Pat. No. 4,651,442; Belanger et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,817,301; Rodgers U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,467; Crotts et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,238; Carlson, U.S. Pat. No. 4,933,016; Crotts U.S. Pat. No. 4,991,316; McElroy, U.S. Pat. No. 5,187,881; Johnson U.S. Pat. No. 5,367,739; McElroy et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,421,102; Sauter U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,475; and Bowman, U.S. Pat. No. 5,875,565.
In summary, while it is well recognized that it is desirable to thoroughly dry a washed car as quickly as possible immediately after completion of the washing thereof to avoid unsightly water-spots, no such exit drying arrangement is known or available for use in commercial-type self-service coin-operated manual car wash stations.
Thus, there is a need for a manually operable drying system for use with such manual car wash stations in keeping with the above-mentioned desired attributes and characteristics, that eliminates the difficulties and undesirable characteristics of conventional towel drying and prior apparatus, and that includes integrated ease of operation by the occasional user and protection of the associated equipment.
The general aim of the present invention is to provide new and improved self-service coin-operated manual car wash stations including integrated provision for automatic exit drying of cleaned vehicles so as to eliminate the need to towel dry the vehicle to prevent water spots.
A detailed objective of the invention is to achieve the foregoing by providing self-service coin-operated manual car wash stations including integrated coin-operated time-controlled air supply apparatus providing for a drying supply to dry the washed vehicle as it exits the wash bay.
A more detailed objective of the invention is to provide such air drying apparatus comprising a high-volume forced-air blower/dryer arrangement that is integrated into the exit of the washing station and controlled by the coin-operated timing controller of the conventional water and soap spray wand of such car wash stations.
These and other objectives and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.